NOTES: This was Polaroid's first true B&W film. Not long after it
hit the market, customers and Polaroid engineers discovered that prints
made from this film sometimes would start to fade after a few months.
Unlike the sepia prints, the chemistry of the new B&W film left
the prints not completely stable, and subject to attack by humidity
and contaminants in the air.
After much research by Dr. Land and other Polaroid engineers, the only
solutions that could be found at the time involved the application
of a fixing agent to each print by the customer. Thus was born
the "Print Coater" that became so familiar to Polaroid
photographers. Research continued on solving the "coater problem,"
but it wasn't until the early 1970's when a coaterless B&W Polaroid
film could be brought to market. Even today, there are still a few
Polaroid B&W film types that require coating after development.
Even after improved film types (Types 42, 43, 44) were introduced, Type 41
continued to be offered as a slightly cheaper alternative film for
situations (such as print copying) where panchromatic response wasn't
important or necessary.

NOTES: This was a sort of "premium quality" alternative
to Type 42. It had a wider tonal range than Type 42 and was geared
towards the professional photographer. [Notice also that the
professional-level
Model 110 Pathfinder
was available at this time.]
While the negative on this film had an
acetate base rather than paper, it was not reusable ala
Type 105/665/55 film.

NOTES: Polaroid also sold a fluid-filled plastic container called a
"Dippit" as a companion product for Type 46/46-L film.
The Dippit served a purpose similar to that of the print coaters supplied
with the various B&W print films. After removing the transparency from
the camera, you opened the end of the plastic Dippit box and inserted
the transparency inside. Then, you'd seal the box again and invert
it a couple of times to distribute the fixing/hardening agent all over the
transparency. Then you pulled the transparency out through a
squeegee device which removed the excess coating. Each Dippit
contained enough agent for several rolls of film.
As an aid in using this film, Polaroid offered special clip-on viewfinder
masks which matched the format of these slides. In fact, some
cameras, such as the
Model 150
and 800, came from the factory
with built-in finder aids for this film (yep, that's what those
funny pointy triangle things are in the 150/800 viewfinder window).
While this film was discontinued in 1964, you may encounter
"Type 46" film boxes with considerably later expiration dates.
What you're really seeing is Type 46-L film (below) after it was
renamed to Type 46.

NOTES: This is essentially the same film as Type 46, but produces
larger slides. Polaroid also offered matching snap-together
plastic slide mounts for this film, as well as at least two
different matching projectors (one of these was made by American
Optical, another one was made by Keystone for Polaroid).
At some point after discontinuing the
'regular' Type 46 film, Polaroid dropped the
"-L" suffix on the name of this film and simply called
it Type 46 instead.
I'm not sure when it was formally discontinued, but I do know it
was still available in 1986/87 or so, and that was probably
about the end of the line for this product.

NOTES: At the time it was introduced, this was a truly breakthrough product.
As far as I know, this was the fastest rated continuous tone photographic
film available in any format. Remember that back in 1959,
anything faster than ASA 125 was considered a high-speed film. Not
only that, but it was the introduction of 3000-speed film that made possible
such simplified Polaroid cameras as the
J66 and
Swinger 20. It also
made possible certain Polaroid camera accessories such as the Wink-Light
and the Photoelectric Shutter.

NOTES: Polacolor film was another major breakthrough product of
its era. In fact, it represented the culmination of a series
of some of the most difficult and complex chemical engineering
problems ever solved. Many man-years of research went into
designing this film.
ASIDE: One of the side benefits of Type 48 film from a
consumer point of view was that, unlike all the B&W Polaroid
films at the time, Type 48 didn't require a print coater.
What most people don't know, however, is that things almost didn't
turn out that way. Fact is, Polacolor did require a coater even
during most of its pre-release testing phase. ...And unlike the
B&W films (which could be coated hours or even days later at
the photographer's convenience), these prints had to be coated
within five seconds of being removed from the camera or
they'd quickly start to deteriorate-- and perhaps ruined entirely.
Polaroid Corporation even went so far as to
design special devices that could be attached to your camera
to aid in coating the prints quickly in the field, and formulated
a special chemical resistant coating for the back of the prints,
so that you could quickly flip the print over back on top of the
negative and coat the print right there inside the camera door
if need be. Fortunately-- and at practically the last minute--
Dr. Land and the other Polaroid
engineers finally solved the Polacolor coater problem. The
'old' Polacolor film that had been produced was destroyed, and only
the 'coaterless' Polacolor film made it to market.
While production Polacolor film didn't require a coater, some issues were discovered
later in which the tension of some of the chemical layers on the
print could change over time, thus causing the prints to curl up.
Not being able to find a permanent solution at the time, Polaroid
instead provided a set of sticky-backed self-adhesive mounting cards
with each roll or pack of Polacolor film. The idea was that you'd
mount the prints to the cards to prevent them from curling.
However, if the quantity of unused Polacolor print mounts I tend to
find accompanying old Polaroid cameras is any indication, a lot of
people either didn't find the cards necessary or just-plain didn't
want to be bothered with them.
Type 48 was originally specified as having a film speed of ASA 50,
but was quickly bumped up to 75. This may have been a bit optimistic
at first, however, according to some reports.
The discontinuance of Type 48 coincides with a changeover in the
production of the photographic 'negative' stock for Polaroid films.
Before 1976, Polaroid had contracted with Eastman Kodak to produce
the negative material for color Polaroid roll and pack films. As this
contract was expiring, Polaroid made the decision to make its own
negative material for these films instead. This was one of the
changes that brought about an improved
"Polacolor 2"-designated film
in other formats. Presumably, by this time, sales of Type 48 had
dropped to the point where Polaroid didn't feel it worthwhile to
design/build the equipment needed to produce color negative material
in this format, and so the product was simply phased out. That's why
there never was a "Polacolor 2" version of Type 48.

NOTES: Similar to Type 48 except for format.
In addition to the notes regarding Type 48 film, Type 38 had some
special problems of its own. One thing you may not realize is
that there were exactly zero Polaroid cameras that could really
be used with Type 38 film exactly as they were right out of the box.
Like Type 48 film, Type 38 has a thicker base than the earlier
B&W films. However, while this presented no particular problem
to the big Polaroid cameras using the 40-series films (aside from
it being more difficult to tear the negative against the cutter bar),
the design of the back on the
Highlander (80/80A/80B)
cameras was
such that apparently there wasn't enough clearance to pull the
thicker film
through the rollers. This problem was fixed when the
J33
was introduced, as by that time Polaroid Corp was pretty sure the
upcoming Polacolor film would have a thicker base than the current
B&W films. However, the J33's autoexposure/flash system was only
designed for 3000-speed Type 37 film. So, if you actually wanted
to use Type 38 film, you were stuck either way. If you had an
80-series camera, you had to send your camera in to Polaroid Corp
to have the development roller assembly changed out. If you had a J33,
the back was fine as-is, but you had to buy a #330 Color Adapter
Kit to compensate for the exposure difference. Understandably,
Type 38 never quite became the market success that
Type 48 and Type 108 were.

NOTES: The Swinger 20-series films are sort of a hybrid design.
The packaging is similar to the 30- and 40-series rollfilms,
but the film is designed to develop outside the camera like the
100/660- and 80-series packfilms. Other than that, Type 20 is similar
to Type 37 film.
Type 20 was replaced with Type 20C in 1970.

Unless otherwise noted, all 100/660-Series Land Pack Films have the following
characteristics in common:

Each pack produces 8 prints.

Actual image area: 2 7/8" x 3 3/4" (7.2 x 9.5 cm)

100/660-series films (and others included in this category) are
used by Polaroid cameras on the
Packfilm Cameras page marked with
the icon, as well as other
photographic equipment having a Polaroid #405 film back or other
compatible back.

NOTES: This, along with Type 108, was one of the original two film types
introduced with the Model 100
(Automatic 100) pack camera.
I believe it was finally discontinued in 1999 or 2000, but don't
worry-- you can still get its modern coaterless equivalent,
Type 667.

NOTES: Was offered simultaneously with Type 667,
but 107C was
geared towards mass-market retailers, while 667 was primarily
sold by full-service camera stores. 107C was dropped in the mid 1990's,
presumably because not very many mass-merchandisers were stocking
Polaroid pack films any more. At or about the same time, Type 667
went from 8 prints per pack to 10 prints per pack.

NOTES: While nominally ASA 75, most (if not all) Type 108
film packs made before the early 1970's bore a sticker directing
the user to set the Lighten/Darken control on the camera one small
mark towards Lighten. Doing this would essentially set the exposure system
for about ASA 60.
Like Type 48 (see notes), this film was supplied
with self-adhesive
mounting cards for a while. I'm not sure when the related 'print
curl' problem was solved, but was probably early 1970's or so.
In 1975, was replaced by new "Polacolor 2" film under the
same type number. This was an improved film based on SX-70 technology,
and used a new negative stock made by Polaroid themselves. [Before
this point, Eastman Kodak was contracted by Polaroid to produce the 'negative' material for Polaroid color films. This
changeover was a contributing factor to the discontinuance of Type 48
rollfilm at about the same time. (See the notes for
Type 48 for more details)]
Eventually the "Polacolor 2" designation was dropped, but
remained the same film.
The transition to "Polacolor 2" may or may not be related
to the end of the one-mark-towards-Lighten stickers and the solution
to the 'print curl' problem; I really don't know.
As with Type 107C, this film essentially became the mass-market version
of an otherwise equivalent 'professional' film (Type 668 in this case).
[Type 668 was
supplanted by-- and eventually replaced by-- an improved film called
Type 669.]

NOTES: The literature for this film suggests it is intended for CRT
recording-- but it has normal contrast. [I've used this film, and it
seems identical to Type 107. --MK]
A new Type 84 (no leading zero) film was introduced
in 2003, but this is an unrelated 80-series 'square'-format film.

NOTES: Yes, that's a film speed of twenty thousand, the fastest film
Polaroid has ever offered. Unfortunately, it appears to have been
discontinued as of around 1999/2000 or so. It is a very high contrast
film, though, and difficult
to use for general purpose photography. Designed for CRT/oscilloscope recording.

NOTES: Formerly called Type 105.
Package increased to 10 prints/negatives per pack in 2003.
Polaroid also used to sell (but discontinued long ago) a companion
"clearing bucket"
accessory for this film to aid in the negative "clearing"
process. This rather well-designed product contains a removable
plastic rack
which can hold several negatives safely in the clearing solution
without allowing them to come in contact with each other. [There
is currently a third-party 'clone' of this product available, but I
forget the manufacturer.] In any case, the special 'bucket' is
not necessary for clearing the negatives-- you can use plastic
darkroom trays, tanks, or whatever. You can even use (if you're
really careful!) Ziploc-style plastic bags if you want.OPINION: This is really interesting/fun stuff to work with-- it's
very high in quality, and is probably about the cheapest/easiest way
to produce the occasional big negative. Sodium sulfite isn't always
convenient to find, however. Too bad it has since been discontinued...

NOTES: This is an improved version of Type 669,
and bumped up slightly
in speed in order to match popular conventional films.
This film, along with Type 689, has been replaced with Type 690
as of 2003.
Usage note: You can use this film in classic automatic pack cameras
too-- just set the speed selector to 75/Color, and adjust the
Lighten/Darken control about one small notch towards Darken.

NOTES: This is an even further improved version of
Type 669
and Type 679, and was Polaroid's top-end professional
color pack film until the recent (2003) introduction of Type 690
(which replaces this film).
Usage note: Just as with Type 679, you can use this film in classic
automatic pack cameras too-- just set the speed selector to 75/Color,
and adjust the Lighten/Darken control about one small notch towards
Darken.

This film is not recommended for image transfers or emulsion lift transfers.

NOTES: This is an all-new Professional color film, which not only has
further improvements in color rendition and contrast, but also has a
re-engineered chemistry that makes development (almost)
self-timing. While all Polaroid integral films are (by necessity)
self-timing, this is the first Polaroid peel-apart film to have this
feature.
Usage note: Just as with Type 679 and 689, you can use this film in classic
automatic pack cameras too-- just set the speed selector to 75/Color,
and adjust the Lighten/Darken control between one and two small notches
towards Darken. Alternatively, if your camera has a Scene Selector and you
want a little more depth-of-field, you could instead set the dial for ASA 150,
and set the L/D control about one small mark towards Lighten.

80-series films (and others included in this category) are
used by Polaroid cameras on the
Packfilm Cameras page marked with
the icon (including the
"Square Shooter" and "Zip" series of cameras),
as well as other photographic equipment having a Polaroid/NPC Type 80 film
back or other compatible back.

ADDITIONAL USE NOTE: 80-series films can also theoretically be used in
most standard rectangular-only Polaroid pack cameras and backs marked
only with the icon (such as the
'classic' folding pack cameras), but this should be avoided because
those cameras lack the necessary light shields needed to protect the
smaller 80-series pack in case you ever need to open the film door when
the camera is loaded (to fix a 'missing white tab' problem, for example).

NOTES: Type 87 was always "coaterless." It was also
the first coaterless pack film that Polaroid introduced.
Type 87 may have been discontinued as of the late 1990's, but was
resurrected in 2003 as part of a re-introduction of the 80-series format
to professional markets. Unfortunately, its reprise was to be
short-lived, as it was discontinued again (along with the other
remaining 80-series films) in 2006.
Package was increased to 10 exposures per pack when it was reintroduced
in 2003.

NOTES: Similar to Type 108 (*) except for format.
In 1975, was replaced by new "Polacolor 2" film under the
same type number. This was an improved film based on SX-70 technology.
Eventually the "Polacolor 2" designation was dropped, but
remained the same film.
(*) With the re-positioning of the 80-series format in 2003, Type 88 was
reformulated and became similar to Type 669
except for format. Package was also increased to 10 exposures per pack
at this time.

NOTES: This was the film introduced with the original SX-70 camera.
This was just as
much a breakthrough product as the original Polacolor
(i.e. Type 48)
film was in 1963. It's truly a marvel of chemical engineering, if you
stop to think about it.
This film was replaced with SX-70 Time-Zero film around 1980.

NOTES: This was the film originally introduced with the Polavision
camera.
While Polavision as a product was ultimately unsuccessful, this film
does stand out as another important landmark in photographic history.
Polavision film (and its technological successor,
Polachrome instant 35mm slide film)
is very unusual in that it is an additive
color film. In other words, the illusion of color is formed by
adding together proper proportions of red, green, and blue
light. All other color films starting with Kodachrome (the true
3-color version introduced in 1935) have been subtractive in nature. In
other words, colors are formed by blocking (subtracting) light with
dyes of magenta, yellow, and cyan. Theoretically (at least),
an additive film could potentially produce more realistic colors,
as this is exactly the way
our own eyes work-- we view the world as RGB additive light.
Polavision/Polachrome film actually creates a color image in much
the same
way a color television set does. If you take a look at some processed
Polavision or Polachrome film under a microscope, you'll find that
its surface is made up of strips of alternating red, green, and blue
filters (appearing in some ways like the phosphor stripes of the CRT of a color
TV). These filters act both during exposure and during viewing
to reproduce color. Yes, Polavision and Polachrome films are essentially
B&W films that have been adapted for color by this clever mechanism.
[Getting the extremely fine filter stripes on the film in such consistent
manner was one tricky enginnering feat indeed, however!] The downside
to the filtering is that it by necessity cuts down on the amount of
light that can be transmitted through the film. In other words, it's
quite dense compared to, say, Kodachrome or Ektachrome. This problem
of light loss is also a contributing reason why Polaroid decided
to market a stand-alone tabletop viewer for Polavision rather than
a conventional projector to be used with a large screen.

NOTES: This was a high-speed B&W version of Polavision film designed
for special industrial/scientific applications, and was probably not
intended for general use in the standard Polavision camera.
It is probably similar in design/chemistry to the color Polavision films
but without the tri-color filter stripes (i.e. much like the current
Polachrome vs. Polapan 35mm slide films).

NOTES: This sort of film has been sold under many different names
each having a different seasonal or character theme. These include
'holiday' films for Christmas and other holidays, as well as 'character'
films such as Barbie Film and Looney Toons Film.

NOTES: Assumed to be the same as Spectra 700, above, but packaged as
12 prints per pack; designed for use with recent Spectra/Image
"1200"-series cameras which have an exposure counter designed
to accomodate 12-exposure packs.
Not available in USA/Canada.

NOTES: Improved version of Captiva 95 film. The Captiva name was
dropped, and the film renamed to "500" film to better
match Polaroid's new numeric naming pattern for mass-market films,
and to reflect the introduction of new cameras for this format.

NOTES: Similar to Pocket Sticker Film, but a "secret message"
appears overlaid on the picture as it starts to develop. The message
disappears shortly afterwards. A different message appears on each
picture in the film pack.

Other Professional/Industrial Films

Unless otherwise noted, all 35mm Instant Slide Films have the following characteristics in common:

Film is packaged in standard 35mm film 'cassettes' (i.e. similar to
conventional 35mm film used in standard 35mm cameras).

Supplied with processing cartridge to be used in AutoProcessor.

Reversal film-- produces transparencies which can be mounted and
projected in conventional slide projectors.

Slide mounts not included with film, but conventional slide mounts
can be used.

Actual image area: (depends on camera; nominally 36mm x 24mm)

35mm Instant Slide Films can be exposed in standard 35mm cameras
and backs. These films require the Polaroid AutoProcessor for
development.
(*) Usage notes: These films should not be used in fully automatic
cameras which have no means of manual ASA/ISO selection (including
most point-and-shoot cameras), as the film canisters are not DX coded for automatic
film speed selection. In addition, they should not be used with off-the-film (OTF)
metering systems present in some high-end professional 35mm SLRs, as these
films have a different reflectivity than conventional films.

NOTES: Polachrome is the technological successor to the Polavision
instant movie system introduced in the late 1970's. [See the notes
regarding Polavision Type 608 film for some
details about how this film
works.] By the way, one significant difference between Polachrome
and Polavision film is the way the 'negative' is handled. [All
Polaroid instant positive films involve a photographic negative
somewhere, even if you don't normally see it.] With
Polachrome,
the negative is part of that black coating you can see on the film
during loading. This black coating gets stripped away at the
end of the development process, leaving just the positive transparency.
The black coating (assuming it strips off the way it's supposed to)
ends up back in the processing cartridge, which is then discarded.
The old Polavision film, however, had both film and processing
materials within the same self-contained package, so there was no way
to 'discard' the negative after development. Therefore, Polavision
film was designed so that the negative layer would simply remain on
the film, but turn transparent after a short period of time. Apparently,
this process wasn't quite perfect, and resulted in somewhat reduced
contrast compared with the newer Polachrome film.

NOTES: Intended for color line art, such as business graphics.
Actually, this is really just regular Polachrome film packaged with
the processing cartridge used with Polagraph film. Reportedly, quite
a lot of people discovered the results of mixing and matching these
particular films and processing cartridges on their own-- so many
so, that Polaroid decided to simply offer it as its own product.

Unless otherwise noted, all 50-Series 4x5 Land Films (and others in this
category) have the following characteristics in common:

Each box contains 20 individual sheets, each producing one print.

Actual image area: 3 1/2" x 4 1/2" (9 x 11.7 cm)

50-series films are used by 4x5 cameras (and similar equipment)
using a Polaroid #500, #545, #545i, or #545pro film holder. See the FAQ
page for an important note about using modern 50-series films with the
old #500 film holder. NOTE: A "Graflok" back is not
necessary for using any of these film holders; a simple 'spring' back
will suffice.

NOTES: I believe this "retro" film was orignally only sold
via special order, but became popular enough that it was added to
Polaroid's general catalog a few years later. Not only does this
film have an "old-timey" look to it, but it's also an
interesting throwback to Polaroid's very own original Type 40 film
from 1948. [In fact, I would guess that Type 56 is similar to
Type 40 except for format, film speed, and panchromatic-versus-orthochromatic
response.]

NOTES: Similar to Type 48 and
Type 108 except for format.
In 1975, was replaced by new "Polacolor 2" film under the
same type number. This was an improved film based on SX-70 technology.
Eventually the "Polacolor 2" designation was dropped, but
remained the same film.
This film has been discontinued, but improved Type 59 film (below) is
still available.

Unless otherwise noted, all 800-Series 8x10 Land Films (and others in this
category) have the following characteristics in common:

Each box contains 15 individual sheets, each producing 1 print.

Actual image area: 7 1/2" x 9 1/2" (19 x 24 cm)

800-series films are used by 8x10 cameras (and similar equipment)
using a Polaroid 8x10 film holder. This film also requires a
matching Polaroid 8x10 Processor box, sold separately. [Unlike
the Polaroid 4x5 film holders, the Polaroid 8x10 film holder
does not have its own self-contained development rollers. The
separate 8x10 Processor has a pair of motorized rollers for film
development.

NOTE: 800-series films were orginally sold in boxes of 10 individual
sheets each, but are now sold in 15-sheet boxes.

Unless otherwise noted, all AutoFilms have the following characteristics in common:

Self-developing (integral film)

Packaged 10 prints to a pack.

Actual image area: 4" x 3" (10.2 x 7.6 cm)

330-series AutoFilms are used in photographic equipment having a
Polaroid CB-33 back. As far as I know, there were no general-purpose
cameras available which use this film 'natively'. NOTE: You can
think of AutoFilm as being much like an "extra-large"
version of Spectra or 600 film.

"Polaroid", "Land Camera" and other camera
names are trademarks of Polaroid Corporation. No endorsement
or approval by Polaroid Corporation is implied, nor is Polaroid
responsible for the accuracy of the content of this web site.